Field of the Invention
This invention relates to improvements in a cat litter box. More particularly, the present “Kitty Cat Can” Exterior Mounted Litter Box for In-Door Cats & Kittens & Other Small Animals allows an in-door pet to essentially exit through a wall and utilize a litter box that is mounted to the outside of the house.
Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
Many pet owners have in-door pets that don't travel outside of the house where the animal can permanently leave or become harmed by other animals that live around the house. There are other pet owners that do not want a house to smell like animals. The smell is often generated by a litter box which also takes up valuable space in a home. Moving the litter box outside of a house often requires the animal to exit the safety and security of the house. An option to satisfy these issues is to secure an enclosed litter box to the outside of a house and then cut a hole from the inside of a house into the enclosed exterior litter box. A number of patents and or publications have been made to address these issues. Exemplary examples of patents and or publication that try to address this/these problem(s) are identified and discussed below.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,975,017 issued on Nov. 2, 1999 to Eddie M. Cameron discloses an Exterior Mounted Housing for Animal Litter Box. This patent has a housing that is mounted on the exterior side of a dwelling having a storage compartment for removably holding a litter box. A hollow open-ended tunnel interconnects the interiors of the dwelling and housing respectively. While this patent discloses an exterior mounted litter box, access to the litter box is available from the side of the litter box and further includes an upper sleeping area that is not accessible for cleaning.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,439,161 issued on Aug. 27, 2002 for Ronald E. Clemmons discloses an Exterior Litter box. This patent has a litter box enclosure mounted on or against an exterior wall of a structure includes a gated passage permitting a pet free access to and from a litter container. The litter box in this patent is on a pivoting base whereby rotating the litter box empties the litter into a collection bag located under the enclosure and also creates plastic landfill waste. This patent has minimal access for cleaning the interior of the enclosure.
U.S. Patent publication 2003/0168017 was published on Sep. 11, 2003 for Jack Aldon Perelli et al., discloses a Cat Outhouse and Method for Using Same. The cat outhouse attaches to the exterior of a house and comprises a box-like shelter, a litter pan, and at least one pass-through door so that the cat can enter the litter box from the inside of the house. While this cat outhouse allows for an exterior litter box, access to the litter box is with a side door, and further sits on the ground where water can flow into the outhouse.
What is needed is an outhouse for an indoor pet. The Ideal outhouse would be mountable to hang onto an exterior wall of a building were animals would be able to go in and out from where they live indoors. Animals would have the convenience of an outhouse to have the choice for privacy and a choice to keep their living space preferably clean and fresh. The outhouse should be seamless in appearance with a hinging roof that locks and slopes to shed water over protected ventilation. It should be roomy inside with high walls to discourage liquid from being trapped in unwanted places. It should have a high walled removable litter liner that may be used over and over to ease landfill waste. The outhouse in this document provides a solution.